{SET BEFORE THE EVENTS OF 'THOR'}
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"Did you know," she said, sitting on the ground and turning to the prince, "that Midgard has an entire language dedicated to flowers? Each of them mean something else. It's a very sweet way they can express emotio...
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After a long day training with Sif, Maeve fought to stay awake at dinner. She wasn't bad in a fight, but keeping up with her friend proved to be exhausting, especially when they sparred with the no-magic rule. Generally, the only person who allowed her to fight them with magic was Loki, and that wasn't exactly an option.
Hoping that no one would mind, she excused herself from dinner early and retreated to her bedroom. There, she washed off and immediately she changed into more comfortable clothes, a pair of soft pants and a long-sleeved shirt. Most Aesir women wore nightgowns to bed, but she didn't care. Pants were comfier. Winter approached, and the cold always made her feel drained. The last few days, she'd been feeling the changing weather more than she ever had before in her life.
Maeve ran her fingers down the spines of the many books on the shelf, selecting one about the Jotunheim. Having grown up with so few reliable sources of information about the realms beyond hers, she loved these volumes, even if many considered them dull. Odin kept books on the land of the Frost Giants in his personal library for reasons she didn't understand, but Loki had stolen this particular one a few months back.
A gentle knock on the door pulled her out of her reading and she quickly bookmarked the page before saying, "Come in."
The door swung open and Thor poked his head in. Despite having tried not to get her hopes up, she couldn't help feeling disappointed. The only person she truly wanted to see wouldn't talk to her.
"Hello."
"Hi, Thor."
He walked into the room and sat next to her on the sofa near the fire, setting down a covered silver tray on the coffee table.
She glanced at her brother-in-law, confused. "What's this?"
A smile crept onto his face. "Well, I noticed that you weren't eating much at dinner, and you completely missed dessert, so I brought you something."
"Really?" Grinning, she lifted the lid. A small pile of strawberry tarts sprinkled in powdered sugar sat on the tray. "You're the best."
"I know." He bumped her shoulder with his, and she reciprocated the action. "Are you looking forward to having guests?"
"Not particularly. It's all a big act." Maeve rolled her eyes. Normally, she'd welcome a visit from the Light Elves, but with that came balls and throne room finery, meaning that she'd have to pretend that everything was all right with her marriage. "As if people don't know that everything's not okay."
Despite Loki's sometimes-scathing remarks, Thor was actually quite bright, even though he didn't dedicate his time to books and studying like his younger brother did. It didn't take an intellectual to hear rumors, and Thor had heard plenty. He knew that Loki had been the topic of palace scandal before, but he didn't think Maeve had ever suffered from being the victim of gossip. That was why he spent his free time with her.
